Gov. Mark Dayton has joined U.S. Sen. Al Franken in rejecting a traditional Minnesota State Fair debate.

Minnesota Public Radio reported Friday that Dayton's campaign says he will not take part in a debate it sponsors each election year. MPR quoted campaign manager Katharine Tinucci as saying that the Democratic governor plans to pare down the list of debates to a half dozen from more than 30 he was in four years ago.

"So we reviewed the other campaigns for either governor or U.S. Senator during the past decade," Tinucci wrote in an email to MPR News. "We found that the principals debated between four and seven times. We have decided that Gov. Dayton will participate in six general election debates, starting after Labor Day."